This is it
by TheHumanBeing3094
Summary: Annie and Abed story. I'm really bad at writing summaries, sorry. Takes place in AU after fifth season, containing some spoilers from the sixth season.
1. The Basic Operations of Forgeting

_AN: I am absolutely in love with the Annie+Abed idea. I haven't really written anything in a while, so please, bear with me, and any feedback is always helpful._

_Disclaimer: I own nothing except the plot._

* * *

Summer was always the hardest time of the year for Annie Edison. Being inactive was difficult for her. In the first two months of vacation she had finished all the mandatory (and not so mandatory) reading for next semester, written summaries of all the course books and even brought all the school supplies in advance.

Annie had watched all the TV-shows and movies on her list, some of them even twice. Doing that alone wasn't half as much of fun as with Abed, but since he spent most of his time with Rachel, Annie was forced to sit in front of the TV by herself.

Finally, one Friday night Annie decided that she had had enough of alone time and decided to go out. She called Britta and invited her for drinks.

"Sure thing, Annie," Britta said in the phone, "only that I promised Jeff already. But if it is okay with you, all three of us can have a night out together."

"That would be awesome. Just tell me when and where."

"Well, we decided to meet at the Red Door at nine, and just see where the night takes us. So we'll see you there?"

"Absolutely, can't wait!"

Annie dropped the phone on the bed. She hadn't been in pubs for months, so she couldn't help but to feel a bit exited. She dug into her closet, trying to find the perfect dress. The red dress she finally chose was perfect – sexy, but not slutty, and comfortable enough to dance in whole night. Paired with her favorite high heels, she felt confident and strong.

Stepping out to the living room, Annie noticed Abed watching the TV. She hadn't heard him coming home, so she was a bit startled for a second.

"Hey Abed, you're home early," she said.

"Yeah, my plans fell through, so I decided to come home and spend some time with you. But now I see that you have you are going out tonight, so I guess I'll just watch some Cougar Town instead."

Annie looked suspiciously at Abed. She could see that something was troubling him. Feeling a bit guilty, she decided to leave it for the next day. She really needed to get out, and she wasn't in a mood to be a therapist right now.

„You are right as always. I'm going out with Jeff and Britta tonight," Annie said. "I'll probably run late, so don't wait up. "

„Actually, Annie, maybe I can come with you? I had a really lousy day and according to various movies, it is custom to go out and have a drink in that situation, "Abed answered, looking hopefully at Annie.

"Of course you can come with us! You know that you don't even have to ask," she said, looking concerned. "Do you want to talk about what happened?"

"I would much rather keep it to myself at the moment, if you don't mind. I haven't really processed today's events yet, so I'm not comfortable sharing them yet. But I appreciate your concerns," Abed said without any emotion. "I'm going to change my clothes, just wait five minutes," and disappeared to his room.

Annie stared at the closed door. _What has happened with him? He never drinks to forget his problems. Something really bad must have happened._

With a loud sigh, she picked up her phone and sent Britta a text: _Running late, coming with Abed._

Annie knew that the night was going to be much more than she planned.

Red Door was already packed when Annie and Abed arrived quarter past nine. They found Britta and Jeff in a booth, drinking their favourite drinks (vodka neat with four olives and Macallan, neat) and arguing heatedly about god knows what.

"Hey guys, sorry we're late," Annie said, sitting down next to Britta.

"Oh, it's no biggie, you didn't miss anything. I should get a refill," said the woman, taking a last zip from the glass, "are you coming to order?"

"Yes, of course. What do you want, Abed? I'll take your order too," Annie said, slipping out of the booth again.

"Just bring me a beer," he answered, looking out of place.

"Something happened with Abed today," Annie said to Britta, making their way to the bar. "I'm not sure what, and he really doesn't want to talk about it, but we have to do our best to keep up his mood, right?"

"Well, as a psych major, I am always happy to offer my services, Annie, but you are right. I want tonight be the funniest evening in my life, so maybe I'll leave the counselling to another day," she answered.

Once in the bar, girls ordered their drinks and went back to the table. They talked about their summer, listened Jeff's complaints about being a teacher ("I swear to god, if there wouldn't be that open bar in the Teachers' lounge, I wouldn't stay another minute in that god forsaken Greendale," he said, "that god damn summer school! If only I had known that I have to teach summer classes when I signed up.") Britta tried to talk with Abed about his problems, but he only slipped from one charming character to another, avoiding answers and making Annie lose her mind.

The night was fun and when Jeff came out with the idea of doing shots, no one resisted. That, as they found out, was a decision that changed their lives. It was also the last thing any of them remembered.

* * *

_AN2: So that was that. Remember, let me know, what you think! Knowing that someone is actually interested what I write is a big motivation to continue!_


	2. Side Effects of Consuming Poison 101

Annie woke up with the worst headache she had ever had. It felt like there had been a bomb explosion behind her eyes, and the shards had pressed into her brain. Forcing herself to open her eyes, she slowly realized that this was not her room.

After a few moments, Annie recognized that she was in Jeff's apartment. It was not a big surprise, since she had crashed on his couch after nights out before. What was surprising for her was the fact that she wasn't alone.

"Hey, Abed," she said to the young man lying next to her. Her mouth was as dry as a dessert and the words didn't really want to come out, but she still forced herself to finish the sentence, "do you know why we are sleeping on the same couch?"

There was a long silence. Since Abed was still sleeping when Annie had started speaking, it took him a few moments to adjust.

"I don't even know where we are," he finally answered, obviously suffering from a major hangover. "Last thing I remember was... me? I think I was taking the third shot, even though that's already quite foggy. It is just like in that movie, where those guys went to that place... Oh, forget it. My brain is broken again."

Annie was just trying to figure out whether she should relocate herself on the recliner or just stay on the couch, when a voice heard from the kitchen.

"Good morning, my little lovebirds," Jeff said jokingly. "Did you enjoy your night in each other's embrace?"

"Ugh, Jeff, why do you always have to be like this?" Annie answered with a question. "I'm truly having the Britta of headaches, so unless you are offering painkillers, I would really appreciate if you could just shut up."

"Oh baby, your words hurt me to my core," Jeff ironized. "You know where I keep the Alka-Seltzer, so help yourself. I'm going back to bed."

Annie dragged herself of the couch. She crabbed two glasses from a kitchen cupboard and made her way to the bathroom, where Jeff kept all his medical stuff. Much to her surprise, Britta slept in the bathtub. _And I was so sure she was in Jeff's bed, _Annie thought. She filled the glasses with water, dropped the tablets in and went back to the living room. Handing one of the glasses to Abed, she mentioned him the discovery she had made.

"Thank god," Abed said. "I was worried for a moment that Jeff and Britta slept together again. That would have had catastrophic effects on the dynamics of our group."

"I couldn't agree more. They dodged the bullet way too closely with all that "let's get married". Nothing good ever comes from those two just "having casual sex"," Annie answered, nodding. She felt that the real reason why she was so happy about it was best kept to her. Abed didn't have to know that she still had that stupid schoolgirl crush on Jeff, which stung her into her heart every time he was with someone else.

"I think we should get going," she said to Abed. "I need a nice, warm shower, and even more importantly, change my clothes." That being said, she stood up, walked to the bedroom and shook Jeff's elbow until he opened his eyes.

"We are leaving, so can you come and lock up after us?"

* * *

It had been a three weeks since their night out, but Annie was still no closer to knowing what had happened with Abed. She suspected that something had happened between him and Rachel, since he suddenly spent most of his time at home. When Annie confronted him about that, Abed just stayed evasive. But it looked like he was back to normal (relative to Abed), so she decided not to poke that subject until he was ready to talk.

And then, on a Saturday morning, Annie was awakened by a loud knock on her door.

"Are you awake? I want to talk to you," Abed said behind the door.

"I am now," she answered, inviting him in. He sat on her chair, looking anxious.

"Rachel is moving to California. She said that we can continue our relationship long-distant, but I'm sure that it is not going to work. Neither of us is a long distant relationship type, so based on the patterns of her behaviour, I estimate that we are going to break up before she leaves or maximum 2 weeks after. I'm not pretending that I'm happy about it, but it seems like the best possible solution."

"Oh, Abed," Annie whispered, "when is she leaving?" She tried her best to ignore the joy that started to rise from her belly. It's not that she didn't like Rachel, she was a nice girl and all, but Annie had started to feel a bit jealous of her. Abed had spent so much time with his girlfriend that she felt a bit... forgotten. Yes, that was it, she felt forgotten.

"Next week. But it's okay. You don't have to pity me. I'm going to be fine. I just felt like it was time to let you know, since you have been obviously bubbling with anticipation for weeks now. I appreciate the fact that you didn't try to pressure me. It was a great help for letting me process every little detail," Abed answered sorrowfully, keeping his eyes on the floor. Annie gave him a comforting hug and said:

"If you feel like you are going to be alright, then I'm sure that you will. But don't forget that I will always be here for you, okay? We all will Jeff and Britta too. You won't ever be alone. But now, lucky charms and Sponge Bob?"

"Cool cool cool."

* * *

So this is the second chapter. I hope you all enjoyed. Don't forget to give me feedback, again, it's what helps me get motivated.  
Until next time, my dears.


	3. Advanced Property Planing

AN: So starting from this episode, there will be some spoilers to season six. They won't be exactly in the same form as in the series, since it is the alternative universe, but they'll be there. You'll get it when you read it :)

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but the plot.

* * *

Annie and Abed stood shoulder to shoulder in front of Rachel's house, waiting her to come out. It was her last day in Greendale and she wanted to say goodbye to the apartment one last time.

„It is really nice of you to come and help us, "Abed said to Annie. „It was mandatory for me to be here, since she is my girlfriend, but you had no obligation to come."

„Nonsense, Abed, I wanted to come. It's not like I had anything else to do, isn't it. "

„Okay guys, I think I'm ready, "said Rachel, stepping out of the door. „It is really hard to leave, but now it's too late to change my mind. I'll come and visit as often as I can. "She planted a small kiss on Abed's cheek and gave Annie a warm hug. „I wish I wouldn't have to leave, but since I do, I'll better get going. It's going to be a long ride. "She got in the car and started the engine. „And Abed, don't forget to call, okay?"

„Okay. "

* * *

For the first time, Annie went to Greendale on the first day of school without worrying whether or not it still existed at the end of school year.

„Hey guys, "she said, walking in the study room, „I'm glad that you all could make it. "

„Yes, we are here, and we don't understand why we have to do this, "answered Jeff, voice filled with boredom. „Didn't we already save the Greendale? There is no point for a „Save Greendale"committee anymore. "

„There are plenty of things that need to be done, Jeff. And since we are all here, I am announcing the first meeting of the year in order. As you all know, we had 535 critical problems at the start of last school year, and I want to congratulate you all for solving all of them. So now our school actually has value and it seems like we are at war with the school board. It seems like Chang has fled the country with the money we found last year, so that is gone, but in the other hand, school board doesn't have it either. Now we have to decide how to put all those corridors and rooms that have been hidden for decades in good use again. Any ideas?"

"We could build a bar down there?" pitched Britta. "I could be a bartender and Vicky could..."

"Yeah, Britta, I'm going to stop you right there," Annie interrupted." We are not building a bar on the school premises. The free flowing booze in teachers lounge is bad enough already. I was thinking that we should renovate them and maybe make them into classes and offices and so on."

"No, I actually like the bar idea," said Jeff, suddenly very interested. "It could bring in some money, and that is never a bad idea."

"Oh, and it could be like 20's theme, like an underground watering hole, and everyone has to wear theme-based outfits. It would be so cool," shared Abed.

"Et tu, Abed? Then again, it's an opportunity to role-play, and you never miss a chance to do that," Annie snapped. "Okay... We'll get back to that topic later, when you have some sense in your head. Next topic will be..."

"Hate to break it to you, Annie, but I have to go. I need to hop by my office before the class, and I will be late, if I don't leave right now," interfered Jeff, getting up. "I'll see you all later."

"Yeah, we better get going too," agreed Britta, following his lead. Within moments, the study room emptied, leaving Annie alone.

_What is going on with everyone,_ she thought, walking to her first class. _As soon as I tried to talk some sense into everyone, they ran away. I understand Jeff; he goes to extreme measures to avoid doing things, but everyone else? _

She was preoccupied for the rest of her day, waking from her trance only to take notes during the lessons. Even when she got home at the end of the day, she was too absent minded to hear the quiet sobbing coming from the other bedroom. Annie fell on the bed, suddenly feeling exhausted. She quickly sank into a dreamless sleep.

* * *

Annie was awakened by a loud noise. She got up, fixed her clothes and made her way to the living room.

"What the heck," she exclaimed, noticing the popcorn that covered the floor. "Abed?"

"In the bathroom. I cut myself with a shard of class when I dropped the bowl." Annie rushed into the bathroom to help him.

"What happened?"

"Oh, nothing, I was just about to watch Inspector Spacetime, but then I thought I saw something on the fire escape. It startled me, so I dropped the bowl, and here I am." Annie gave a look to her roommate's wound. _Nothing too serious, thank god for that. _She grabbed her first aid kit from under the sink, cleaned the cut and let him choose the band-aid of his liking (he chose a one with Thor picture).

"But what did you see?"

"I don't know. It was probably nothing, maybe like a cat or something. For a moment I thought that it was Rick... But it doesn't make sense. Why would he be out there?"

"Yeah, that doesn't make sense," Annie answered. _Mental note: double check that all the blinds are closed at night. _"Let's watch that episode then." She put her hand around his waist and leaded him to living room. "I'll just close all the blinds, just to be extra sure, okay? And maybe you can clean up the mess you made, while I make some special drink."

They settled into the recliners and watched Inspector Spacetime in silence for a while.

"Annie," Abed said with a question in his voice, pausing the TV. "What happened today?"

"What do you mean?"

"In the morning, during the meeting, you seemed fine, but then you kind of dozed off. I know it's not your period, so I can't figure out what's wrong."

"Abed!" Annie exclaimed, utterly shocked.

"Don't worry, I'm not keeping track, officially. It's just hard to forget things that I have learnt."

"Okay... Well, could you never mention it again? It makes me extremely uncomfortable. And there was nothing wrong with me today; you guys were the ones who were weird. It's not like you, Abed, to just run away in the middle of the meeting. And that bar idea? In a school? I get that Greendale is weird and doesn't follow any rules, but an alcohol selling establishment is too much by any standards." Annie could see that Abed was right; she had been the one acting up. And whatever was the reason for the outburst, it was definitely not the fact that she had seen Britta and Jeff walking to the library hand in hand

"Is this what it's about?" interrupted Abed her thoughts. "Because I only went with the idea because, like you said, I really like to dress up and pretend that I'm someone else. It's who I am, and I don't plan to change it, and you haven't complained before. In fact, you are usually more than eager to go with it, so I don't get your outburst."

"No, it's not about that. In fact, I'm not sure what happened. Maybe let's not talk about it, and just finish the episode?"

"Sounds good."

* * *

AN:Thanks for reading, and remember to give me feedback!

You are the best!


	4. Build-up techniques for beginners

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Community, or anything else, except the plot.

„Did you see Troy's message? " Abed asked, sitting next to the kitchen counter, eating his favourite cereal. „He says that he'll be home for Christmas!" Annie could see that he was exited, even though it was hidden under thick layer of blankness.

"Yeah, I only just saw it. It's great news!" Annie grabbed a bowl from the cupboard, filled it full-grain cereal and milk. "It's been so long since he left. I have to start planning a "welcome-home" party, there isn't that much time left, and it has to be perfect, and..."

"Annie! Troy won't arrive next weekend, there will be three months before he comes home; you'll have enough time to plan. Although I admit, it is nice to have a Christmas special again, since we missed last year's."

"Real life doesn't have Christmas specials; we don't live in a TV show," Annie scolded, trying her best to hide a smile. She hadn't seen him so happy since the day Troy had decided to leave. "So anyways, have you made up your mind? Are you going to the "Downton dance" today?"

"I have to. I made a bet on which costume the dean is going to wear. I have 20 bucks on Lady Mary," explained Abed with a smirk.

"Me too!" exclaimed Annie, "Well, I mean, I have 5 dollars in, but also on Mary. So what costume have you planned? I decided to go as Lady Sybil, because, you know, she was the best."

"Oh, I don't have a character based outfit; I just planned to wear my gray suit." Abed crabbed his bowl and walked to the sink.

Annie looked at her roommate suspiciously.

"Really? You, out of all people, are not going to be in character?"

"Okay, you caught me. I was planning to go as Branson, but since you are going as his wife, I thought it would weird."

"Oh, no, you don't have to change your plans because of me. Besides, there will probably be tens of Sybils and Toms there, so it's not that big of a deal."

"Well, if you say so."

* * *

Annie was running down the corridor, realising that she was hopelessly late to her first class of the day. Sure, it was Law 201, taught by Professor Winger himself, but it didn't give her an excuse to skip a class. If anything, it only made her even more obligated to be there –she knew Jeff well enough to know that if the one person who actually learns in his class wouldn't show up, he'd probably dismiss the class and just spend the free time in his office, drinking whiskey and surfing online.

She stepped into the classroom, half expecting it to be empty. Much to her surprise, it was not only filled with students, but there was an actual lecture going on.

"Ah, miss Edison, nice of you to join us," mocked Jeff. "I was just telling the class about "The Case of Murdered Yam."

Annie sighted and slouched on the closest chair. For a moment there she had hoped that maybe she'll learn something from her professor, but as usually, his lecture was pointless. She had been there for the yam case, and it wasn't that big of the deal. Jeff was probably just trying to impress everyone on how he managed to get a better grade with minimal work.

She grabbed a book from her backpack and started to prepare for her criminology class. There was going be a quiz, and a little revision never hurt. She lost the track of time and before she realised...

"And you're dismissed. Read chapter five for next week."

Annie was packing up her stuff when Jeff asked her to come to his table.

"What is it? I have the next class in 20 minutes and it's in the other end of campus."

"Why were you late today? You are never late," Jeff demanded with an angry face.

Annie blushed as she tried to find the right words.

"I had a doctor's appointment that took longer than I expected. And I had to pick up the costume for tonight and then I realised that I forgot my pencil case home, so I had to go back for that, and then Abed asked me to wait for him, since our first classes started at the same time, and then I had to explain to him why he's not allowed to park next to the water hydrant, and then I realised that I was already late, so I started running, and..."

"Okay, Annie, slow down. Stop rambling. It's okay, really, I was just messing with you," Jeff smiled. "You really need to be a bit more loosened up."

"Oh, speaking of being loose, Troy sent a message this morning, saying that he'll be home for Christmas! Isn't that wonderful?"

"It's the best! I hate to admit it, but I kind of miss that guy. How did Abed react?"

"He was thrilled, you know, in his own way. " Annie smiled. "He hummed daybreak all morning, so I guess that he is euphoric." Annie's eyes stopped on the clock that hanged on the wall. "I really need to run now, but I'll see you at the dance, right?" She ran out of the classroom, not waiting for Jeff's answer.

* * *

Abed was putting books to his locker after his last lesson, when he felt his phone buzz. _Let's give this bad boy a read_, he thought absentmindedly. _Hey Abed, I'm going Greendale this weekend. I have some things that I need to talk through with you. Rachel_

Abed felt a cold grasp around his heart. It was finally happening. She was going to break up with him. It wasn't surprising; he had known that this was going to happen from the day Rachel told him she was going to move. That didn't change the fact that it still hurt.

_Cool. Cool cool cool. _Abed's reply was short, not giving away anything. He stuffed the phone back to his pocket, wondering whether to ask Britta for a session, but decided not to bother her. Besides, it was time to go home and get changed, and he didn't want Rachel's message to shadow is evening.


End file.
